|
WEEKLY SESSION NOTES Monday, November 15, 2004 Senate Bill 997 (Jubelirer) would amend the Judicial Code to provide for the payment of expenses for district justices that are temporarily assigned to sit outside the political subdivision in which their magisterial district is located. The county where the district justice is temporarily located would be required to pay actual expenses of up to $50 per day and mileage reimbursement at a rate to be determined by the Administrative Office of the Pennsylvania Courts. Passed: 45-2. Senate Bill 1079 (M. White) would amend the Third Class City Code to permit retirees of a city to continue to receive their pension while serving in an elected office if they do not accept payment for serving in the office. Passed: 47-0. Senate Resolution 324 (Earll) encourages the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission to create a Pennsylvania Conservation Heritage Initiative. Adopted by Voice Vote. Senate Resolution 325 (Earll) designates the month of November 2004 as "Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy Syndrome Awareness Month" in Pennsylvania. This syndrome is a painful disorder caused by an overactive nervous system following a trauma, injury, infection, or surgery. Adopted by Voice Vote. House Bill 552 (Hutchinson) would amend the Pennsylvania Securities Act of 1972 to further define the term "solicitation" as it applies to exempt transactions. Currently, "solicitation" is limited to advertisement and mass mailing. House Bill 552 would add the term "internet or other means" to the definition. The changes would also remove the current Pennsylvania Securities Commission fee structure from the Administrative Code and re-establish it as part of the Pennsylvania Securities Act. The fees would be unchanged from their current levels. Passed: 47-0. House Bill 553 (Turzai) would amend the Pennsylvania Securities Act of 1972 by adding a new section, Section 515 (Temporary Freeze Authority). Section 515 would create a legal mechanism to force the escrow of "extraordinary payments" related to a company being investigated for possible violations of the Act. The legislation gives the Pennsylvania Securities Commission the ability to seek a court order to have these payments escrowed until the Commission determines if any violations have occurred. Any escrowed payments are to be placed in an interest-bearing account with an initial time period for escrow set at 45 days, which can be extended another 45 days. If a violation has occurred, the payments will remain in escrow until the conclusion of any legal proceeding related to the matter. If there has been no violation, the payments and interest will be returned at the conclusion of the 45 days or approved extension. Passed: 47-0. House Bill 561 (Nickol) would amend the Pennsylvania Securities Act of 1972 to require advisors who receive compensation for their advice to disclose to municipal pension plans any amount of compensation that the advisor may directly or indirectly give to another person in connection with obtaining the municipal pension plan as a client or advising the plan on a transaction or the investment of municipal pension plan funds. The measure would also prohibit the use of fraudulent means to induce a municipal pension plan to purchase or sell securities and add a definition of "municipal pension plan or system" to the act. Passed: 47-0. House Bill 595 (Stetler) would amend the Pennsylvania Securities Act of 1972 by permitting a court to reimburse the Pennsylvania Securities Commission for services rendered to a trustee, receiver or conservator. The reimbursement must be requested by the Commission and approved by the court if the Commission has expended significant state funds to assist in the recapture of funds on behalf of injured parties. Reimbursement could not exceed 10 percent of the funds held by the trustee. Passed: 47-0. House Bill 604 (Browne) would amend the Pennsylvania Securities Act of 1972 to allow the Pennsylvania Securities Commission to suspend the registration of a broker-dealer, investment adviser, agent, or investment adviser representative if the person is obligated to pay compensation to purchasers of securities in the Commonwealth and has not paid the compensation in full and in cash. The Commission would be required to rescind the suspension order if the person provides credible evidence that the compensation has been paid. The measure would also increase the penalties for various crimes under the act. A district attorney or the Attorney General would have the authority to investigate and institute criminal proceedings for any violations of the amended section. Passed: 47-0. House Bill 2027 (Roberts) would amend the Urban Redevelopment Law to further provide for the membership of redevelopment authorities in third class cities. Under the change, a majority of the members of an authority would have to be residents of the city, while the remainder could be non-residents who own and operate businesses in the city in which the authority is to operate. Concurrence in House Amendments to Senate Amendments: 47-0. House Bill 2298 (Benninghoff) would mandate that removable dentures and removable orthodontic appliances be permanently marked with the name of the person to whom they belong. Dentures that are in current use would be marked for identification during rebasing (the complete replacement of all the pink tissue portion of a removable full or partial denture). There is an exemption provision that would allow patients to refuse the labeling. Passed: 47-0. Executive Session Nominations to Various Boards and Commissions. (See Attached) Confirmed: 47-0. Tuesday, November 16, 2004 Senate Bill 859 (Robbins) would amend the Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law to expand the definition of "unfair methods of competition" and "unfair or deceptive acts or practices" to include advertising a live musical performance or production through the use of a false, deceptive or misleading affiliation, connection or association between the performing person or group and a recording person or group. Among other exceptions, the provisions would not apply if the performing person or at least one member of the performing group was a member of the original recording person or group and played a significant role in the group. Passed: 47-0. Senate Bill 1052 (Earll) would authorize a number of land conveyances. Under the bill, the Department of General Services would be authorized to:
Senate Resolution 298 (Greenleaf) urges Congress to provide for a domestic energy policy that: ensures an adequate supply of natural gas, including developing the appropriate infrastructure; embraces a concerted national effort to promote greater energy efficiency; and, produces a political consensus to open promising new areas for environmentally responsible natural gas production. Adopted by Voice Vote. House Bill 994(Rubley) would create the Transit Revitalization Investment District Act, which would permit public transportation agencies, transportation authorities, AMTRAK and passenger rail transportation providers to work cooperatively with counties, municipalities and private sector entities to establish Transit Revitalization Investment Districts (TRID) and form partnerships to carry out plans for transit oriented development. The creation of a TRID would require a planning study and an agreement between the affected municipalities and transit agencies to define the activities and commitments of each party. The measure would allow TRIDs to have priority consideration for implementation grants from pertinent county planning agencies and other local and state agencies with applicable grant and loan programs. It would further delineate the roles and responsibilities of public transportation agencies and municipalities for proposed real estate development or redevelopment, and would establish the framework and authorize cooperative agreements between transit agencies and municipal governments for mechanisms to capture the value added by joint development activities for reinvestment in the transit system and local communities. Passed: 47-0. (Note: House Bill 994 was further amended by the House of Representatives. The Senate concurred in these amendments on Saturday. For additional information please see the summary of House Bill 994 under Saturday's session.) House Bill 2022 (Petrone) would amend the Assessors Certification Act to make it applicable to second class counties. Assessors in second class counties on the effective date of the act would have three years to become certified. Passed: 47-0. House Bill 2218 (Herman) would allow liquid fuels money to be used by municipalities for computer-related hardware, software and training necessary to submit reports and verifications to Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. Total expenditures for this purpose could not exceed $1,000 annually. The bill also makes editorial changes reflecting the dissolving of the Department of Highways in Act 120 of 1970. Passed: 47-0. House Bill 2430 (Benninghoff) would amend the Vital Statistics Law to require that a coroner or medical examiner take and submit to the Pennsylvania State Police a DNA sample prior to the issuance of a death certificate for an unidentified human body or fetal remains. The State Police would be required to perform forensic DNA analysis on the samples and enter their findings into appropriate DNA databases. This requirement would in no way relieve the coroner or medical examiner from any requirements pertaining to missing children or authorize them to dispense with the normal investigative procedures used to identify a body or fetal remains. Passed: 47-0. Wednesday, November 17, 2004 Senate Bill 564 (M. White) would amend the Rural Pennsylvania Revitalization Act to include the branch campuses of the University of Pittsburgh in the Center for Rural Pennsylvania's grant program. The measure would also modify the quorum requirement for the Center's 11-member board from six members to a simple majority. An additional change would include the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau on the list of organizations from which the Governor is required to appoint board members. Passed: 47-0. Senate Bill 798 (Jubelirer) would establish the Capitol Centennial Commission to oversee the events, materials, information and other matters that occur in conjunction with the centennial anniversary of the Pennsylvania State Capitol. The Commission would consist of the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, President Pro Tempore, Majority Leader and Minority Leader of the Senate, the Speaker, Majority Leader, and Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, and the chairman of the Capitol Preservation Committee. The Lieutenant Governor, the President Pro Tempore of the Senate, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives would serve as co-chairpersons. Any use of the term "Capitol Centennial" or "Capitol Centennial Celebration" in an advertisement without the authorization of the Commission would be a third degree misdemeanor punishable by a fine of up to $1,000. Passed: 47-0. Senate Bill 1030 (Erickson) would establish the Alternative Energy Portfolio Standards Act and provide for the sale of electric energy generated from renewable and environmentally beneficial sources. The measure would require that electricity sold to Pennsylvania retail customers by an electric distribution company or an electric generation supplier must be comprised of electricity generated from alternative energy sources. This would be phased in over a 15-year period for Tier I alternative sources and establishes annual standards for the percentage of electricity sold that must be from Tier I sources. In the fifteenth year, at least one-half of one percent of the electricity sold to retail customers must be from Tier I sources. A fifteen-year phase-in schedule is also established for Tier II sources requiring that 10 percent of electric sold must be from Tier II in the fifteenth-year. Compliance with these standards would not be required for electric distribution companies or electric generation suppliers that have not reached the end of their cost-recovery period. Passed: 32-15. Senate Bill 1192 (Pippy) would amend the Fiscal Code to extend the Treasury Department's prudent person investment authority until December 31, 2006. The Treasury Department could maintain investments in existence on the expiration date for not more than two years. The Treasury Department would also be specifically authorized to hold, purchase, sell, assign, transfer or dispose of equity securities and mutual funds consisting in whole or in part of equity securities. Concurrence in House Amendments, as Amended: 47-0. Senate Bill 1259 (LaValle) would authorize the Department of General Services to accept, by donation, a 0.07 acre tract of land in Ambridge Borough, Beaver County from Harmonie Associates, Inc. Passed: 47-0. Senate Resolution 327 (M. White) designates the week of January 23 through 29, 2005 as "Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists Week" in Pennsylvania. Adopted by Voice Vote. Senate Resolution 328 (Orie) designates November 16, 2004 as "Prematurity Awareness Day" and November 2004 as "Prematurity Awareness Month" in Pennsylvania. Adopted by Voice Vote. House Bill 138 (Prime Sponsor Withdrew) would amend the Vital Statistics Law to create a restricted account known as the Vital Statistics Improvement Account within the General Fund. Three dollars from each fee received for a certified copy of a death certificate from a local registrar and one dollar from each fee for death certificates issued by the Department of Health in lieu of a local registrar would be placed in the Fund. Monies would be distributed, based on the number of deaths in the county, for modernization of local coroner or medical examiner offices. The bill would increase the fee for certified copies of death certificates issued by local registrars from $2.00 to $6.00 and the amount that local registrars would retain would increase from $2.00 to $3.00. The maximum compensation for local registrars would increase from $35,000 to $60,000. The bill would also allow a local Department of Health office to act in lieu of a local registrar when none exists. The fee for death certificates issued by a local Department of Health office would be $9.00. Passed: 29-18. House Bill 249 (Solobay) would amend the First Class Township Code to allow a township to use the revenue from the dedicated fire tax for building and maintaining fire houses or training centers, purchasing land for a fire house, and the training of fire personnel. The changes would also permit a township to use up to one-half of the revenue (not to exceed one mill) generated from the dedicated fire tax for the purpose of paying salaries, benefits or other compensation of fire suppression employees of the township or a fire company serving the township. The bill would also allow the township to use up to half of the revenue from the tax for supporting ambulance, rescue and other emergency services for salaries, benefits and other compensation of these employees serving the township. Townships could increase the rate of the tax for supporting ambulance and rescue squads up to three mills if approved by voter referendum. Passed: 47-0. House Bill 310 (Creighton) would designate the portion of State Route 1040, known as Spur Road in East Cocalico Township, Lancaster County as the Colonel George Howard Boulevard. The measure would also designate the bridge carrying the Fruitville Pike over railroad tracks in Manheim Township, Lancaster County as the General Richard M. Scott Bridge. Passed: 47-0. House Bill 1238 (Marsico) would amend the Combustible and Flammable Liquids Act to:
House Bill 1620 (Yudichak) would authorize the release of Project 500 restrictions on 0.719 acres of land owned by Wright Township, Luzerne County in exchange for restrictions being placed on other land owned by the township. Passed: 47-0. House Bill 1860 (Pallone) would amend the County Code by including state or local community and economic development projects as authorized purposes for county investments. Regarding the investment of county funds, the legislation would add hotels to the definition of "convention center" and "convention center facility", thus allowing tax-exempt bond financing for the development of convention center hotels in third class counties. Hotels would also be added to the definitions of "convention center" and "convention center facility" for the use of the hotel room rental tax in counties covered by this section of the County Code. House Bill 1860 would further amend the County Code regarding the powers and duties of county park police. County commissioners in a third class county contiguous to a second class county (i.e., Westmoreland County) could, by ordinance, create or disband a county park police force. County commissioners would have the power to employ the number of officers as may be fixed by the county salary board and the officers would be paid by the county. The primary jurisdiction for county park police would include property owned, leased or controlled by the county; property owned, leased or controlled by a county authority or agency; a county airport authority; or a community college of which the county is a local sponsor. Within these areas, county park police would have the power to protect the grounds and buildings; prevent crime and investigate criminal acts; and arrest or issue citations. The county commissioners would designate the chief and classification of the county park police officers. Passed: 47-0. House Bill 2227 (Rubley) would amend the Forest Lands Beautification Act to reduce the transfer from the Recycling Fund to the Forest Lands Beautification Restricted Account from $1.5 million to $500,000. In addition, the transfer period would be extended from five years to ten years. Additional changes would permit the transfer of funds to come from the Solid Waste Abatement Fund and the Keystone Recreation, Park and Conservation Fund. Passed: 47-0. House Bill 2572 (Baker) would amend the Judicial Code to establish that proceedings for summary offenses under Title 75 could be commenced within 365 days after the commission of the offense, the discovery of the commission of the offense, or the discovery of the identity of the offender, whichever is later, if the offense involved an accident resulting in bodily injury or death of any person. The measure would further clarify that no action could be taken pursuant to a summary offense under Title 75 subsequent to three years after the commission of the offense. Passed: 47-0. House Bill 2587 (Phillips) would authorize the Department of General Services to convey 0.374 acres and a stone school in Northumberland County to the Milton Area School District for $1.00. The school district would be required to provide public access to the building and to ensure that any improvements to the property are compatible with its original architectural design or the property would revert to the Commonwealth. Passed: 47-0. House Bill 2599 (Gabig) would designate Exit 37 on Interstate 81 in Cumberland County as the 87th Infantry Division Patton's 3rd U.S. Army – WWII Memorial Interchange. Passed: 47-0. House Bill 2978 (Birmelin) would amend the Judicial Code to provide for the payment of expenses for district justices that are temporarily assigned to sit outside the political subdivision in which their magisterial district is located. The county where the district justice is temporarily located would be required to pay actual expenses of up to $50 per day and mileage reimbursement at a rate to be determined by the Administrative Office of the Pennsylvania Courts. Similar provisions are also included in the bill for senior district justices. Passed: 45-2. Thursday, November 18, 2004 Senate Bill 871 (Wenger) would amend Title 22 (Detectives and Private Police) of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes by creating a new Chapter 37 to provide for the appointment of humane society police officers who would enforce the Crimes Code as it deals with cruelty to animals. Provisions of existing law that authorize non-profit corporations to appoint policemen for the purpose of preventing cruelty to animals would be eliminated. The legislation would increase the required number of hours for training for humane society police officers to become certified from 56 to 60 hours. It would also require that humane society police officers be court appointed to serve in each county where they are directed by their organization to act. Currently, officers may serve in all 67 counties regardless of where their court appointment is made. The appointment of the humane society police officer would be filed with the district attorney and search warrants for the officer would need the district attorney's approval. Under the bill, nonprofit associations dedicated to the prevention of cruelty to animals would apply to any county Court of Common Pleas to appoint an individual as a humane society police officer. The individual would have to: be a resident of the Commonwealth for the previous 12 months; successfully complete the required training program, which includes firearm training; and, not have been convicted of a summary offense for cruelty to animals or convicted of a felony or serious misdemeanor offense. After conducting a hearing, the Court of Common Pleas, on its own action or via a filed complaint, could suspend, revoke, limit or restrict a humane society police officer's appointment if the court finds that the humane society police officer was convicted of a felony or a serious misdemeanor, was convicted of cruelty to animals, presented false credentials, or carried a firearm without proper training and certification. A person who violates Chapter 37 would be guilty of a misdemeanor of the third degree and would be sentenced to a fine of up to $1,000 and/or up to 90 days in prison. The measure would also establish a statewide registry to maintain information about humane society police officers. An 11-member statewide Humane Society Police Advisory Board would be established to make nonbinding recommendations to the Secretary of Agriculture. A cost of $50 would be imposed on every conviction other than a summary offense for a violation of cruelty to animals and monies collected would be remitted to the Commonwealth for use by the Department of Agriculture for administering the act. Concurrence in House Amendments: 47-0. Senate Resolution 315 (Earll) requests the Public School Employees' Retirement Board to take action relating to annuitants who were denied recomputations for their benefits upon the death of a survivor annuitant. Adopted by Voice Vote. House Bill 30 (Adolph) would amend Title 66 of Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes by re-writing Chapter 30 (Alternative Form of Regulation for Telecommunications Services) which expired on December 31, 2003. Among other provisions, House Bill 30 would:
House Bill 657 (Major) would amend the Pennsylvania Farmland and Forest Land Assessment Act of 1974 by changing how some farmland is assessed. Specifically, the legislation would remove from preferential assessment farmstead land in the agricultural reserve and forest reserve land use categories. Farmstead land would still be considered when determining the minimum number of acres eligible for the agriculture reserve and forest reserve land use categories, and farmstead land would continue to receive preferential assessment under the agricultural land use category. Senate amendments clarified that farmstead land must be assessed at agricultural use value if the farmstead land is located within an area enrolled as agricultural use. The bill further requires county assessors to report to the state the number of acres in each land use category. Finally, the bill provides that no roll-back taxes would be due and no breach of preferential assessment would have occurred if the owner of the land enrolled in either the agriculture use or forest reserve categories permits a "recreational activity" to take place on that land, provided that the activity does not render the land incapable of producing an agricultural commodity. Passed: 47-0. House Bill 798 (O'Brien) would prohibit municipal pension or retirement systems in first class cities from denying benefits to a surviving spouse of a police officer or police employee as a result of the surviving spouse remarrying. The bill would also repeal other statutory provisions that are inconsistent with legislation. Passed: 47-0. House Bill 1211 (Micozzie) would amend the Public Welfare Code to increase the personal needs allowance for medical assistance nursing home residents from $30 per month to $40 per month. (The personal needs allowance is deducted from the individual's gross income when determining what the individual must pay toward the cost of care while residing in the nursing facility.) The bill would also provide that the allowance would increase to at least $45 beginning on July 1, 2007. The bill was amended by the Senate to authorize the Budget Secretary to annually transfer from the Healthcare Provider Retention Account to the Medical Care Availability and Reduction of Error (MCARE) Fund an amount up to the aggregate amount of abatements granted by the Insurance Department under the MCARE abatement program for physicians. Senate amendments would further provide for inclusion of podiatrists in the MCARE abatement program for calendar year 2005. Podiatrists would receive a 50 percent abatement. Passed: 47-0. House Bill 1535 (Lewis) would amend the Local Tax Enabling Act of 1965 by requiring earned income tax (EIT) collection offices/agencies to distribute the EIT revenue to the respective local taxing jurisdictions within 60 days of the conclusion of each deadline of receipt of payment. The bill further provides for local taxing jurisdictions to recover all reasonable costs incurred during the collection of delinquent per capita, occupation, occupational privilege, or earned income taxes. The incurred costs would be imposed on the taxpayer who is delinquent in payment. The governing body of the political subdivision must provide and approve an itemized accounting of all costs incurred on an annual basis. Additionally, the bill clarifies that a political subdivision does not have to pass a resolution or ordinance on an annual basis to redesignate its tax collection agency. Passed: 47-0. House Bill 1929 (Perzel) would create the Manufactured Housing Improvement Act. Under the terms of the bill, Commonwealth agencies and building code officials would be required to comply with the 2000 amendments to the National Manufactured Housing Construction and Safety Standards Act of 1974. The Department of Community and Economic Development would establish regulations for the training and certification of new manufactured home installers as well as for building code officials concerning the inspection of manufactured homes. House Bill 1929 would also establish a fee structure to fund educational, testing and certification programs. Passed: 47-0. House Bill 2155 (B. Smith) would Title 30 (Fish) of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes by adding a section to require a performance audit of the Fish and Boat Commission. The audit would have to be provided to the Senate and House Game and Fisheries and Appropriations Committees no later than July 1, 2007, and every three years thereafter. The bill would also, require the Commission to submit an annual report to the House and Senate Game and Fisheries Committee and the Appropriations Committee no later than January 31 of each year. The measure would also define one-day fishing license and increase fishing license and permit fees, by varying amounts. Further, the bill establishes a special permit for fishing on Lake Erie and for fishing guides and fishing charter boats. Finally, the bill increases boater registration fees 30 percent. Passed: 46-1. House Bill 2308 (O'Neill) would amend Title 23 (Domestic Relations) of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes to require a foster family care agency to consider the following when approving applicants as foster parents: ability to provide care, nurturing, and supervision to children; mental and emotional well-being and ability to work in partnership with the agency; supportive community ties; ability to care for children with special needs and existing family relationships; the number and characteristics of foster children; and, the ability to accept the foster child's relationship with his/her own parents. In addition, foster parents would not be considered employees of the county agency. Foster parents and individuals over the age of 18 that reside in the home of a prospective adoptive or foster family must submit a report of criminal history record information and a child abuse clearance for review by the agency and, after approval, would be required to submit these reports every 24 months. If a change occurs regarding the criminal history or child abuse reports, the foster family would be required to report the change to the foster family care agency within 48 hours and any change in the composition of the family unit must be reported within 30 days of the change. If foster parents knowingly fail to submit this information and the information would disqualify them as foster parents, the foster child would be removed without a hearing. Some of the criteria the Department of Public Welfare would consider when reviewing prospective foster and adoptive parent applications would include: where the applicants resides and their financial stability in the past ten years; child abuse clearance and criminal history background information; composition of the family unit; and, previous experience working with foster children. The Department would also establish a registry of resource family applicants that provide temporary foster care or kinship care for children who need out of home placement. Foster family care agencies and adoption agencies would be required to register applicants and approved resource families. Passed: 47-0. House Bill 2315 (Crahalla) would amend the Real Estate Tax Sale Law to provide a procedure for the judicial sale of multiple properties. Second Class A, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth class counties (including those that have adopted Home Rule Charters), would be permitted to file one action with the court for judicial tax enforcement against multiple properties. Current law requires individual filings for each property. Passed: 47-0. House Bill 2336 (Petrone) would amend the Municipal Claim and Tax Lien Law to provide a procedure for the judicial sale of multiple properties. Under the bill, municipalities would be able to file one action with the court for judicial tax enforcement against numerous properties. Current law requires the filing of individual actions with the court for the judicial sale of each property. Passed: 47-0. House Bill 2405 (McCall) would designate the bridge carrying SR 248 over Aquashicola Creek in Palmerton Borough, Carbon County as the Colonel John Craig Memorial Bridge. Passed: 47-0. House Bill 2561 (Mundy) would authorize the Department of General Services (DGS) to convey the "Dennison House" and land in the Borough of Forty Fort, Luzerne County to the Luzerne County Historical Society for $1.00. The property would have to be used for educational or historical exhibition purposes and be maintained in accordance with historical standards or it would revert to the Commonwealth. The bill would also authorize the conveyance of 5.7 acres in Allentown and Salisbury Township, Lehigh County through competitive bidding or public auction. The proceeds would be placed in the Capital Facilities Fund to acquire, renovate, or construct replacement facilities for PennDOT's Engineering District 5-0. Finally, the bill would direct DGS to execute a corrective deed to permit the Northumberland County Historical Society to transfer the Bloody Springs historical property to the Shikellamy School Distict for public and educational purposes. Passed: 47-0. House Bill 2638 (Cappelli) would amend the Real Estate Tax Sale Law to provide alternate means for collecting delinquent property taxes and provide for assignment of delinquent tax claims. Under the provisions of the bill, taxing authorities would be permitted to contract with a third party collection agency to assist the county tax claim bureau. House Bill 2638 also allows the assignment of property tax claims by taxing districts. Assignment does not affect the five percent commission paid to the tax claim bureau or any county charges that may apply. Upon assignment, delinquent taxpayers would be entitled to the same rights and defenses available under the Real Estate Tax Sale Law. Passed: 44-3. House Bill 2745 (Baldwin) is the Highway-Railroad and Highway Bridge Capital Budget Supplemental Act for 2004-2005. The measure would authorize $1,399,803,000 in bridge projects. Passed: 47-0. House Bill 2748 (R. Miller) would amend the Pennsylvania Municipal Retirement Law of 1974 by adding a new section to permit municipalities participating in the Pennsylvania Municipal Retirement System to determine whether participation in the pension system is prohibited for new part-time employees hired after the effective date of the amendment to the act (July 1, 2005). Existing permanent part-time employees would have the right to elect to participate in or withdraw from the pension system. Such elections must occur before July 1, 2005 and would be irrevocable. Existing permanent part-time employees who elect to become members of the pension system would have to pay all member contributions plus interest as if they had participated in the system from their date of hire. The decision of any part-time employee to withdraw from the pension plan would be irrevocable. Passed: 47-0. House Bill 2794 (George) would designate the bridge on State Route 3012 over Clearfield Creek in Beccaria Township, Clearfield County as the Private First Class Bradley G. Kritzer Bridge. The bill would also redesignate the bridge over the Monongahela River, known as the Clairton-Glassport Bridge, connecting the City of Clairton and the Borough of Glassport, as the Senator Edward P. Zemprelli Bridge. Passed: 47-0. House Bill 2798 (Nailor) would amend the Borough Code to:
House Bill 2804 (Hutchinson) would amend the Coal and Gas Resource Coordination Act to eliminate the requirement that gas wells in coal areas be set back 330 feet from property lines. The measure would also delete Section 7(d) of the act which permits the Department of Environmental Protection to waive the property line set-back under certain conditions. Passed: 47-0. Friday, November 19, 2004 Senate Bill 79(Mowery) would amend the Dual Party Relay Service and Telecommunication Device Distribution Program Act to change the name of the act to the "Universal Telecommunications and Print Media Access Act" and to establish a Print Media Access System Program. The legislation would define "Print Media Access System" as a telephone access service that provides access to national and local newspapers. The bill would give the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation (OVR) the ability to establish criteria for the System Provider. Concurrence in House Amendments: 46-0. Senate Bill 92 (Greenleaf) would amend Megan's Law (Title 18 and Title 42). Among other changes, the measure would create new penalties for sexual offenders who fail to comply with registration requirements with gradually increasing penalties for repeat offenses. In addition, more information on convicted sex offenders would be posted on the Internet. Further, out-of-state offenders who move to Pennsylvania would have to continue to comply with either the requirements of the state in which they were convicted or Pennsylvania's requirements, whichever are tougher. Convictions for two offenses (luring a child into a motor vehicle and institutional sexual assault) would be added to the 10-year registration list. New definitions would ensure that the amendments comply with a recently decided PA Supreme Court case on Megan's Law (Commonwealth v. Williams, a.k.a. "Williams II"). Under additional changes, the State Police would now be notified when a convict is subjected to Megan's Law and an administrative process would be established for convicts to petition for relief from the various posting and notification requirements. Senate Bill 92 would also address the successor liability statute relating to asbestos-related law suits. The successor liability statute, passed in 2001, limited the cumulative liabilities of a company when it merged with another to the inflation-adjusted fair market value of the assets of the merged company. The law would be amended to comply with a Pennsylvania Supreme Court case (Ieropoli v. Crown Cork & Seal) that prohibited the retroactive extinguishment of asbestos-related law suits that had accrued before the new law was enacted. Under the change, the liability limits would only apply to claims that had not accrued as of December 17, 2001. Under additional changes, the Deficiency Judgment Act would be amended to provide a procedure for real property sold at judicial sale that is located in more than one county. If real property is sold for less than the judgment amount, and the creditor wants to collect the remaining balance, the creditor would no longer have to petition the court of common please in each county to fix a market value on the property to determine the deficiency. Under the change, the creditor could petition the deficiency court (where the real property has the highest adjusted value) for a valuation prior to the sale. The definition of "primary jurisdiction" in the County Code would also be changed to include the geographical area of county park police forces of third class counties. Concurrence in House Amendments, as Amended: 46-0. Senate Bill 133 (Prime Sponsor Withdrew) would amend Title 42 and Title 75 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes, by making several technical changes to the recently enacted DUI Reform Law, Act 24 of 2003. These changes include: permitting district justices to handle ignition interlock offenses; creating a definition for an "ignition interlock system"; increasing the driver's license revocation period from five years to ten years, for a person convicted of three offenses related to driving under the influence; providing for an increase in the period of revocation of an additional two years for each additional offense committed within a period of seven years; and, providing for the mandatory use of an ignition interlock system for any vehicle owned or leased by any person convicted of two or more DUI-related offenses. The bill further states that any person permitted to drive only with an installed ignition interlock system, who drives a vehicle without one, commits a felony of the third degree and provides that attempts to bypass the system constitute a misdemeanor of the third degree. A person who provides a "clean" breath sample for such an attempt commits a summary offense. The bill would also increase the penalties for a first DUI conviction and would give a judge discretion to require an ignition interlock system even for a first DUI offense. Concurrence in House Amendments, as Amended: 46-0. Senate Bill 304 (Waugh) would amend the Probate Code to further provide for the classification and payment of debts when the assets of an estate are insufficient to cover them. State and local taxes would be added to the list of priority debts to be paid. In addition, the following items would be increased from $3,500 to $5,000:
Senate Bill 356 (Erickson) would amend the Crimes Code to waive the fee charged by a state or local police department for conducting a criminal background check on a prospective volunteer who will serve without compensation with: an affiliate of Big Brothers of America, Inc., Big Sisters of America, Inc., Little League Baseball, Inc., a rape crisis or domestic violence center, a volunteer fire department, a volunteer ambulance service, Boy Scouts of America, Girl Scouts of the United States of America, a religious group, the YMCA, the YWCA, a block parent program, or any other group that primarily works with children. The measure would also require the criminal justice agency to extract and disseminate only the criminal history information if the report is going to a non-criminal justice agency and to maintain a log of the dissemination of the information. An additional change would increase from 15 days to 30 days the amount of time allowed to notify other criminal justice agencies of the detection of inaccurate data in a criminal history record. Concurrence in House Amendments: 46-0. Senate Bill 432 (Conti) would amend the Wireless E-911 Emergency Telephone Services Fund by making a technical change thus ensuring that counties and wireless carriers could recoup wireless E-911 costs for the year 2004. Concurrence in House Amendments: 46-0. Senate Bill 669 (Costa) would amend Title 2 (Administrative Law) and Title 42 (Judiciary and Judicial Procedure) by providing for certified foreign language and sign language interpreters in administrative and court proceedings. Foreign language and sign language interpreters in administrative proceedings would be certified by the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation and a database of interpreters would be maintained and published electronically. Foreign language and sign language interpreters in court proceedings would be certified by the Court Administrator and a database would be maintained and published electronically. All interpreters would be paid by the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation or the Court Administrator depending on the proceedings. The General Assembly would appropriate funds for the certification and payment of interpreters. If sufficient funds are not appropriated, the program would not be implemented. In all situations, interpreters would be bound by an oath of neutrality in interpretation and confidentiality. Passed: 46-0. Senate Bill 673 (Waugh) would amend the Agriculture Education Loan Forgiveness Act to expand the agriculture education loan forgiveness program to include teachers of agricultural education. The measure would also expand the eligibility for individuals employed on a family farm or a veterinary practice to those who attended accredited colleges and universities outside of the Commonwealth. Concurrence in House Amendments: 46-0. Senate Bill 703 (Wonderling) would provide for the confidentiality of Social Security numbers and set standards for the use of Social Security numbers by businesses, state agencies and political subdivisions beginning July 1, 2006. The measure would establish penalties for violations of the standards of usage and provide for limited exemptions from the bill for certain financial institutions and health insurance carriers. Passed: 46-0. Senate Bill 844 (Stout) is the Highway and Transportation Assistance Capital Budget Project Itemization Act of 2003-2004. The bill would authorize highway projects in the aggregate amount of $1,894,588,000 to be financed from revenues of the Motor License Fund. In addition, the measure would authorize $46,378,000 in transportation assistance projects to be financed by the incurring of debt. The measure would also waive the matching requirements for certain capital projects in the category of transportation assistance projects for rural and intercity rail and clarify that the construction of a new crime laboratory facility would be located in Embreeville, Chester County. Concurrence in House Amendments: 46-0. Senate Bill 931 (Pileggi) would amend the Police Officer, Firefighter and Correction Employee and National Guard Member Child Beneficiary Education Act to include the children of sheriffs and deputy sheriffs killed in the line of the duty in the postsecondary educational gratuity program. Under the program, the children of the individuals covered by the law receive free tuition and room and board at Pennsylvania community colleges and state-owned and state-related universities. Sheriffs and deputy sheriffs would be deemed to have been killed in the performance of their duties if death results from job-related injuries sustained or inflicted while maintaining order and security or otherwise carrying out their duties. County commissioners would be required to provide written notification to the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency within 20 days when a sheriff or deputy sheriff is killed in the performance of his or her duties. As amended in the House, the bill would expand the program to cover the children of individuals on federal or state active military duty who are Commonwealth residents and are killed in the performance of their duties. The act would be retroactive to September 11, 2001. Concurrence in House Amendments: 46-0. Senate Bill 938 (Conti) would amend Title 75 (Vehicles) to:
Senate Bill 1096 (Armstrong) would amend the Insurance Company Law to require certain new provisions for annuity contracts issued both prior to and after January 1, 2006. Under the terms of the bill for annuities issued before January 1, 2006, insurance companies would be required to do the following: adhere to new guidelines involving payments to contract holders; provide to the annuitant a statement showing the formulas used to calculate the paid-up annuity, the cash surrender value or death benefit; and disclose that the benefits available are not less than what is requires under the law in the state where the contract was delivered. For annuity contracts issued after January 1, 2006, the following provisions would be required: a new floating rate of interest on non-forfeiture amounts between 1% and 3% (current law provides for a rate of 1.5%), as determined by a formula based upon the five-year Constant Maturity Treasury Rate reported by the Federal Reserve; a decrease in the benefit amount based upon any prior withdrawals, an annual contract charge of $50, any premium taxes paid by the company, and by the amount of indebtedness to the company on the contract. The new law would also establish one minimum cash value of 87.5% on all annuities (current law provides for a rate of 65% on flexible annuities and 90% on single premium annuities. Senate Bill 1096 also implements model language proposed by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners that modernizes the current statutory provisions governing corporate investment in surplus notes. Finally, Senate Bill 1096 addresses long-term care insurance and personal care insurance by setting clear distinctions between the two and adding language aimed toward protecting consumers by preventing deceptive or fraudulent marketing of policies. Concurrence in House Amendments: 46-0. Senate Bill 1102 (Gordner) would create programs within the Department of Community and Economic Development and the Commonwealth Financing Authority to provide financial assistance for water projects that build, expand or improve water and wastewater infrastructure which are related to economic development. All projects would have to be approved by the Commonwealth Financial Authority to receive financial assistance. This legislation implements the Water and Wastewater Treatment Project Bond Act (Act 10 of 2004). Approved by the electorate on April 27, 2004, the act authorizes the incurring of indebtedness by the Commonwealth in the amount of $250 million. Of this amount, $200 million would be allocated for the implementation of the Water Supply and Wastewater Infrastructure Capitalization Program; and, $50 million would be allocated to the Pennsylvania Infrastructure Investment Authority to finance projects for the repair, rehabilitation or modernization of existing, or the construction of new, water and wastewater systems within the Commonwealth. Concurrence in House Amendments, as Amended: 46-0. Senate Bill 1167 (Conti) would amend the State Lottery Law to change the manufacturer rebate percentage for generic drugs for PACE, PACENET, and other designated pharmaceutical programs. The rebate percentage would change from the current 14 percent to the determination established by section 1927(c)(3) of the Social Security Act. The measure would also clarity that a brand name product should be dispensed (and not substituted with a generic drug) if it is less expensive to the program. An additional change would allow PACENET enrollees to remain eligible for the program until December 31, 2005 if the maximum allowable income limit is exceeded due solely to a social security cost of living. Concurrence in House Amendments: 46-0. Senate Resolution 326 (Brightbill) proclaims the week of January 16 through 22, 2005 as "Snowmobile Safety Awareness Week" in Pennsylvania. Adopted by Voice Vote. Senate Resolution 329 (Earll) urges formal acknowledgment from the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) that Pennsylvania law precludes Pennsylvania domestic violence counselors/advocates from providing identifying information about victims of domestic violence to any person, institution, organization or government entity and that the confidentiality requirements of Pennsylvania statutory law should supersede rules promulgated by HUD requiring disclosure of personally identifying information about victims of domestic violence to HUD's Homeless Management Information System. Adopted by Voice Vote. House Bill 176 (Scavello) would amend the Tax Reform Code of 1971 to make a number of changes. Among other modifications, the bill would authorize the Department of Revenue to collect delinquent local real estate transfer tax and to assess the cost of the collection plus any interest as a fine on the delinquent taxpayer. The measure would also clarify that a city of the second class is not subject to the one percent limit on the local realty transfer tax. Other changes included in the bill would permit the imposition of a use tax on the rental value of a motor vehicle when the rental period is equal to or longer than one year; provide that a nonprofit league, chamber, or real estate board would not be included in the definition of "corporation" for the purposes of the Corporate Net Income Tax and the Capital Stock and Franchise Tax; clarify the procedure for the sale of any unused research and development tax credit to shareholders, members or partners; provide a front-end process by which a taxpayer can apply for the Film Production Tax Credit; and, place a time limit on certain personal income tax refund check-off programs. Passed: 46-0. House Bill 623 (Maher) would amend the Crimes Code to expand the offense of deceptive and fraudulent business practices to include furnishing misinformation to or withholding information from certified public accountants, public accountants, or public accounting firms. Concurrence in House Amendments, as Amended: 46-0. (Note: House Bill 623 was further amended by the House of Representatives. The Senate concurred in these amendments during Saturday. For additional information, please see the summary of House Bill 623 under Saturday's session.) House Bill 835 (Maitland) would repeal Chapter 47 of Title 42 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes and reestablish the provisions regarding DNA data and testing in Title 44. The measure would require all individuals convicted of or adjudicated delinquent for any felony offense to submit a DNA sample to the Pennsylvania State Police (PSP) database, upon admission to a correctional facility. In addition, the bill would make it a condition of release for all felons currently incarcerated to submit a DNA sample. Further, any future efforts to seek expungement of a felony conviction or delinquency adjudication would not expunge the sample in the PSP database. The measure would also extend the statute of limitations for certain misdemeanor sexual offenses and any felony offenses when DNA evidence becomes available to identify a perpetrator. Under the change, a prosecutor could take action within one year after the perpetrators identity is established. Passed: 46-0. House Bill 1113 (Weber) would remove the authority of the Pittsburgh School District to levy the mercantile license tax and would change the distribution of the earned income tax (EIT) to direct more money to the City of Pittsburgh. Currently, the EIT in Pittsburgh is three percent, of which the school district receives two percent and the City of Pittsburgh receives one percent. The bill would increase the city's share in 2007 to 1.1 percent, in 2008 to 1.2 percent, and to 1.25 percent in 2009 and subsequent years. The legislation would also require school entities (school districts, area vocational technical schools and intermediate units) to develop written policies that allow for the possession and self-administration of asthma inhalers by children of school age. It also stipulates a school entity's policy may require specific information regarding a child's use of an asthma inhaler be provided to the school entity and that a parent or guardian may be required to provide a written statement to the school entity to permit the student to use the inhaler absolving the school entity or its employees of any liability. The responsibility and cost to develop and administer asthma inhaler policies will rest with local school entities. Passed: 44-2. House Bill 1262 (True) would amend Title 23 (Domestic Relations) by establishing the Address Confidentiality Program administered by the Office of the Victim Advocate. A victim of domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking could enter the program by filing an affidavit with the Office of Victim Advocate and designating the Office as the agent for receiving service of process and other communications intended for the program participant. The program would also be available to a person who is a member of the same household as a program participant. Certification in the program is valid for three years unless the certification is withdrawn or canceled. State and local government agencies would be required to accept the confidential, substitute address designated on a valid program participation card issued to the participant by the Office of Victim Advocate. State and local functions affected by the program include:
All records relating to applicants and program participants are the property of the Office of Victim Advocate and are declared confidential and not subject to the Right-to-Know Law. For purposes of emergency disclosure, the Office of Victim Advocate would establish a system to respond to requests for emergency disclosures. Penalties are provided for disclosure of confidential information, knowingly providing false information, and attempting to gain access to any participant's actual address through fraud or misrepresentation. Passed: 46-0. House Bill 1329 (T. Stevenson) would amend the Uniform Planned Community Act, 68 Pa.C.S. §§ 5102 – 5414, to make several changes to the law applicable to most planned communities of more than 12 residential units. The bill includes language which would: prohibit an association from requiring a unit owner to pay any financial security fees related to unit renovation or repair; require the certification of plans only by a licensed land surveyor, architect or engineer; allow the executive board of an association to amend its bylaws to provide for disabled access; prohibit the assignment of reserve funds being held for future major repairs of common elements; allow an association to carry property or comprehensive insurance which provides for a large deductible; allow a unit owner to carry insurance for his own unit which covers damages not covered under that deductible; prioritizes mortgages and deeds of trust over liens for unpaid common expense assessments; and, permits a purchaser to cancel a contract for the purchase of a unit within seven days of receipt of a public offering statement, if he signs the contract before he sees the public statement. Passed: 46-0.
House Bill 1330 (T. Stevenson) would
amend the Real Estate Cooperative Act, 68 Pa.C.S.
§§ 4101 – 4418, to make several changes to the law
applicable to most cooperatives created within the
Commonwealth, excluding those restricted to
nonresidential use. The bill includes language
which would: allow associations to amend their
bylaws by a vote or by agreement of at least
67 percent or more of its proprietary lessees;
permit an association to annul a self-executing
termination provision if at least 80 percent of the
lessees agree; allow the association to amend its
declaration to create disabled access; allow the
association to assess a capitol improvement fee,
upon resale or transfer of a unit, which may not
exceed the annual assessment; prohibit the
assignment of reserve funds held for future major
repairs or replacements of common elements; provide
for the investment of the associations' reserve
funds, to be governed by the "prudent investor
rule" defined in 20 Pa.C.S. § 7203; allow the
association to carry insurance with a large
deductible; allow the unit owner or lessee to carry
insurance to cover the amount of that deductible;
and, clarify the distribution of proceeds upon
judicial sale of a unit. Passed: 46-0. House Bill 1331 (T. Stevenson) would amend the Uniform Condominium Act, 68 Pa.C.S. §§ 3101 – 3414, to make several changes to the law applicable to all condominiums created in the Commonwealth after July 2, 1980, and to the public offering statements circulated in Pennsylvania for condominiums located outside the state. The bill includes language which would: require the certification of plats or plans by a licensed land surveyor, architect or engineer; hold the responsible party liable to reimburse the association for any damage to common areas which he caused; permit limitations on easements to allow the restriction of vehicles over 10 tons during the spring thaw season; prohibit an association from assessing fees for the use of an easement unless damage is done to common areas; allow the association to amend its bylaws with the vote of 67 percent or more of unit owners, and further permit the association to modify the bylaws to provide for disabled access; permit the association to annul a self-executing termination provision if 80 percent of the owners agree; permit the association to engage in arbitration or mediation on its own behalf, or on behalf of two or more unit owners; allow the association to assess a capitol improvement fee upon the sale of a unit, which may not exceed the amount of the annual assessment; allow the association to carry property and comprehensive insurance with a large deductible; allow a unit owner to carry insurance to cover his portion of that deductible; prioritize mortgages and deeds of trust over liens for unpaid assessments; clarify the distribution of the proceeds, upon judicial sale of a unit; and, clarify the rights of a buyer to void a purchase contract. Passed: 46-0. House Bill 1867 (Causer) would repeal an outdated section of an act which sets fees for measuring grain in the port and city of Philadelphia. This language is obsolete, as the Home Rule Charter for Philadelphia sets the rate and charges. Passed: 46-0. House Bill 1868 (Causer) would repeal an outdated section of an act which allows farmers to rent their stalls in any market in the city of Philadelphia to other farmers. This language is not needed as Act 309 of 1861 restates the same provisions. Passed: 46-0. House Bill 1954 (Cruz) would amend the First Class City Home Rule Act to adjust the amount of fines for violations of ordinances, rules, and regulations adopted pursuant to the Act or under any charter adopted or amended pursuant to the Act. The fines could not exceed $2,300. In addition, the legislation would grant a governing body vested with legislative powers under any charter adopted pursuant to the Act, as well as any aggrieved person, standing to appeal any decision of a zoning hearing board or other board or commission created for the purpose of regulating development within the city. Passed: 46-0. House Bill 2021 (Semmel) would amend the Liquor Code to allow beer distributors to sell on Sundays between the hours of noon and 5 p.m. Failed: 6-40. House Bill 2029 (Cruz) would allow Philadelphia to impose a maximum fine of $5,000 on short dumping which occurs when vehicles used to transport trash knowingly deposit their vehicles' load on public areas, the land of another or in the waters of the Commonwealth. The city could confiscate any vehicle(s) involved with violating the act. In addition, Philadelphia would be required to report all fines and penalties to the Department of Transportation who would suspend the violator's operating privileges license for six months. Passed: 46-0. House Bill 2036 (Kenney) would amend Title 20 to provide for a new "Mental Health Advance Directive" and powers of attorney. Current law provides for advanced directives in health care (living wills), but does not specifically authorize mental health documents. The two new legal documents would allow an individual to specify mental health treatment preferences in advance of any incapacity due to mental illness and/or to designate a proxy to make treatment decisions on his or her behalf in the event of a psychiatric crisis. This legislation also includes changes to the Prudent Investor Rule for charitable trusts. The rule would apply to charitable trusts having voting control (not controlling interest) of certain publicly traded business corporations. The duties of the Attorney General would be modified as to when challenges to transactions can be made. The bill would shift the burden of proof to the Attorney General to show the transaction should be stopped, and would change the standard of review to a lower standard of preponderance of the evidence. Changes made in 2002 relating to the applicability of requirements for charitable trusts with controlling interests in certain corporations (the Hershey Trust) would also be repealed. Passed: 46-0. House Bill 2055 (Yewcic) would amend Title 51 (Military Affairs) of the Pennsylvania Consolidate Statutes regarding the preference state veterans receive when applying for a state civil service position. The legislation would add language that ensures that provisions of the state's veterans' preference law are afforded to military reservists who are federally activated for war or armed conflict, then released from that active duty to serve out their remaining service obligation in the military reserves. Passed: 46-0. House Bill 2090 (Fichter) would amend the Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law to further provide for rescission of contracts in emergency situations. Under the bill, rescission rights could only be waived through the execution of an emergency work authorization form (as outlined in the legislation) for goods or services exceeding twenty-five dollars that are contracted to be sold as a result of a contract made by the buyer for the purposes of remedying a bona fide emergency on the buyer's residential real property. Once a rescission is given/obtained, the seller could immediately undertake the work necessary to remedy the emergency. Nothing in the legislation prohibits a contractor from charging a service call fee or from taking immediate preliminary steps to remedy a clear and immediate danger that may cause death or serious injury. Passed: 46-0. House Bill 2105 (Marsico) would amend the Liquor Code to make a number of changes. Among other modifications, the bill would:
House Bill 2262 (Egolf) would create the "Child Internet Protection Act" to require public libraries and school entities (area vocational technical schools, charter schools, cyber-charter schools, intermediate unit or school districts) to implement acceptable-use Internet policies and utilize filtering systems. The Secretary of Education would withhold a portion of state funding from any public school entity or public library that receives state funding for noncompliance. Aggrieved parties could appeal to Commonwealth Court. The bill would allow an administrator to disable the filter for an adult or minor who provides written parental consent for bona fide research or other lawful purposes. Passed: 43-3. House Bill 2270 (Vance) would create the Family Support for Persons with Disabilities Act to direct the Department of Public Welfare to develop and implement pilot projects to provide support and services to families of persons with disabilities. The Department of Public Welfare would work with stakeholders to identify and apply for available public-private funding sources and would evaluate the pilot projects and report to the General Assembly on a plan for statewide expansion within three months of completion of the pilot projects. Pennsylvania families with at least one disabled family member (regardless of age) would be eligible. First priority would be given to families not eligible for any other family support services and second priority would be given to families eligible for, but not receiving, any such services. Funding for the services could not be used to displace benefits, entitlements or other available resources and would be considered the payor of last resort. Passed: 46-0. House Bill 2326 (Gillespie) would amend the Game Code (Title 34) to delegate the authority to the Game Commission to regulate the process in which persons are to report any harvested big game to the Commission. Passed: 46-0. House Bill 2384 (Semmel) would amend the Underground Utility Line Protection Law to make a number of changes regarding the One Call System. Under the bill, a facility owner would be required to submit an incident report to the Department of Labor and Industry (L&I) not more than ten days after the receipt of notice that the facility owner's lines were damaged by excavation or demolition activities that resulted in personal injury or in property damage to parties other than the facility owner or excavator. Likewise, a contractor must also submit an incident report to L&I not more than ten working days after striking or damaging a facility owner's line resulting in personal injury or property damage to third parties. These incident reports may be furnished to the PUC and PEMA pursuant to memoranda of understanding. The One Call System (OCS) would be required to provide access to, or photocopies of, specific OCS response records, tickets, or other similar information relating to matters under investigation by L&I. Such access must be granted not more than ten working days after a request. Further, the measure would prohibit any contract, public or private, from attempting to limit the rights of contractors under the act. Any attempt to waive the provisions via a contract would have to be reported to L&I. The legislation would also establish a schedule of administrative penalties and grant the Secreatary of Labor and Industry subpoena power for the purpose of investigating violations of this act. The measure would also clarify that the provisions of the act would not affect any civil remedies for personal injury or property damage, except as otherwise provided for in the act. Passed: 46-0. House Bill 2387 (Hickernell) would amend Title 3 (Agriculture) of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes by adding a new chapter that would update and codify the current Pennsylvania laws that govern certification, sale and distribution of plant seed in the state. The bill would modify some existing labeling requirements and would create new provisions including a licensing requirement for all seed distributors. The Department of Agriculture would implement, enforce and prescribe penalties for the act. Passed: 46-0. House Bill 2406 (Metcalfe) would designate the bridge on State Route 3021 (Franklin Road) which passes over Wolf Run in Cranberry Township, Butler County, as the Steven M. Krochta Memorial Bridge. Passed: 46-0. House Bill 2482 (Stern) would establish the State Railroad Infrastructure Bank and the State Railroad Infrastructure Bank Fund. The Department of Transportation would administer the State Railroad Infrastructure Bank as an economic development program to provide low-interest loans to railroads or their customers for the purpose of financing rail freight infrastructure. The Department of Transportation would also determine the rate at which loans taken from the fund would be repaid and would establish all guidelines, rules, and regulations to carry out the Act. Passed: 46-0. House Bill 2749 (Major) would amend Section 302 (Referenced Standards) of the Pennsylvania Construction Code Act to require that the Department of Labor and Industry's Uniform Construction Code (UCC) regulations contain the latest national standards to be used to regulate the operation of ski lifts. The legislation would abrogate the standards which relate to ski lift operations at Title 34 Pa. Code Chapter 405.2(a)(4) and would eliminate the requirement that a ski lift be closed when there is a nonfatal injury. The legislation would also allow municipalities and municipal authorities to have standards that are stricter than the UCC for the installation of water/sewer laterals on private property which are connected to a public main providing that the standards were in effect prior to January 1, 2005. The standards would be in effect until they fail to equal or exceed the UCC. Passed: 46-0. House Bill 2865 (Stetler) would amend the Municipal Pension Plan Funding Standard and Recovery Act by allowing for alternate amortization schedules under certain circumstances. The bill would permit an alternate amortization schedule for any increment of unfunded actuarial accrued liability that: exceeds $9,000,000; causes at least a 30 percent increase in the aggregate actuarial accrued liability of the pension plan; and, is attributable to a single benefit enhancement granted prior to January 1, 2004 and is being newly recogni |